Markey wins Massachusetts Democrats’ endorsement as Moulton clears ballot hurdle in Senate race
WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) — U.S. Representative. Seth Moultona moderate Massachusetts Democrat, secured enough delegate support to appear on the state’s primary ballot Saturday. He is challenging incumbent U.S. Senator Ed Markey in this year’s Senate race.
Although Moulton cleared a significant hurdle to pursue his Senate bid, it was Markey who won the party’s endorsement after receiving the support of more than 50% of the delegation.
“You have a choice, you have to decide what the future looks like and what you want to demand,” Markey said Saturday before more than 4,000 delegates.
Markey received about 73% of the delegates’ support, while Moulton received about 27% of the vote. Massachusetts Democratic Party rules require statewide candidates to receive at least 15% of delegate support to appear on the primary ballot.
In Democratic-dominated Massachusetts, the Senate primary is one of the most closely watched in the country as Moulton, 47, focuses his campaign on changing the status quo and demanding a generational shift in leadership.
If Markey is re-elected, he will be 80 years old before the start of his third six-year term. While Markey touted his resilience and embrace of progressive policies, age-related questions continued to swirl around Democratic candidates fighting to take back control of Congress.
In his nomination speech, Moulton argued that the Democratic Party needed more than “incremental change” and needed to start over.
“It’s time for the generation that grew up with the internet and will have to live with artificial intelligence for decades to move on this path,” Moulton said.
Moulton only briefly addressed his opponent during his nomination speech, offering a tentative nod that he shouldn’t wait another six years for a generational change, and later urged Markey to participate in multiple debates ahead of the September primary. The two candidates have now agreed to participate in a debate this summer.
Instead, Markey took a more critical approach, attacking Moulton’s previous comments about transgender children and accepting corporate PAC money.
“Massachusetts deserves better than a senator who scapegoats transgender kids,” Markey said to loud cheers.
In 2024, Moulton faced criticism from some members of his party for saying he did not want his daughters to play sports against transgender girls. Critics said Moulton echoed Trump’s comments against allowing transgender athletes in girls’ and women’s sports.
Moulton has since said that his intention with this statement was “to make the point that as a party we must be willing to have difficult conversations.”
Moulton, who joined the Marines after the September 11, 2001 attacks and served four tours of duty in Iraq, was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2014. He briefly launched his 2020 presidential campaign but abandoned his bid a few months later.
Markey served as a Massachusetts congressman for nearly 40 years before winning his Senate seat in 2013. Fended off a challenge in 2020 In the Senate primary, Rep. Joe Kennedy III turned to his progressive allies to overcome a challenge from a younger challenger from America’s most famous political family.
The Massachusetts primary is September 1.
